In Concert – MTV Plugged Film

The video release of Springsteen’s appearance with his ‘92-era band in this MTV series preceded the audio release by six months and includes three songs not aired on the broadcast or included on the audio release: “Living Proof,” “If I Should Fall Behind,” and “Roll of the Dice.”

Lyrics
Well my soul checked out missing as I sat listening
To the hours and minutes tickin' away
Yeah, just sittin' around waitin' for my life to begin
While it was all just slippin' away.
I'm tired of waitin' for tomorrow to come
Or that train to come roarin' 'round the bend
I got a new suit of clothes a pretty red rose
And a woman I can call my friend

These are better days baby
Yeah there's better days shining through
These are better days baby
Better days with a girl like you

Well I took a piss at fortune's sweet kiss
It's like eatin' caviar and dirt
It's a sad funny ending to find yourself pretending
A rich man in a poor man's shirt
Now my ass was draggin' when from a passin' gypsy wagon
Your heart like a diamond shone
Tonight I'm layin' in your arms carvin' lucky charms
Out of these heard luck bones

These are better days baby
These are better days it's true
These are better days
There's better days shining through

Now a life of leisure and a pirate's treasure
Don't make much for tragedy
But it's a sad man my friend who's livin' in his own skin
And can't stand the company
Every fool's got a reason to feelin' sorry for himself
And turn his heart to stone
Tonight this fool's halfway to heaven and just a mile outta hell
And I feel like I'm comin' home

These are better days baby
There's better days shining through
These are better days
Better days with a girl like you

Lyrics
I was driving through my hometown
I was just kinda killin' time
When I seen a face staring out of a black velvet painting
From the window of the five and dime
I couldn't quite recall the name
But the pose looked familiar to me
So I asked the salesgirl "Who was that man
Between the doberman and Bruce Lee?"
She said "Just a local hero"
"Local hero" she said with a smile
"Yeah a local hero he used to live here for a while"

I met a stranger dressed in black
At the train station
He said "Son your soul can be saved"
There's beautiful women nights of low livin'
And some dangerous money to be made
There's a big town 'cross the whiskey line
And if we turn the right cards up
They make us boss the devil pays off
And them folks that are real hard up
They get their local hero
Somebody with the right style
They get their local hero
Somebody with just the right smile

Well I learned my job I learned it well
Fit myself with religion and a story to tell
First they made me the king then they made me pope
Then they brought the rope

I woke to a gypsy girl sayin' "Drink this"
Well my hands had lost all sensation
These days I'm feeling all right
'Cept I can't tell my courage from my desperation
From the tainted chalice
Well I drunk some heady wine
Tonight I'm layin' here
But there's something in my ear
Sayin' there's a little town just beneath the floodline
Needs a local hero
Somebody with the right style
Lookin' for a local hero
Someone with the right smile
Local hero local hero she said with a smile
Local hero he used to live here for a while
Also Appears OnLucky Town

Lyrics
Well they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night now they blew up his house too
Down on the boardwalk they're gettin' ready for a fight gonna see what them racket boys can do

Now there's trouble busin' in from outta state and the D.A. can't get no relief
Gonna be a rumble out on the promenade and the gamblin' commission's hangin' on by the skin of its teeth

CHORUS
Well now everything dies baby that's a fact
But maybe everything that dies someday comes back
Put your makeup on fix your hair up pretty
And meet me tonight in Atlantic City

Well I got a job and tried to put my money away
But I got debts that no honest man can pay
So I drew what I had from the Central Trust
And I bought us two tickets on that Coast City bus

CHORUS

Now our luck may have died and our love may be cold but with you forever I'll stay
We're goin' out where the sand's turnin' to gold so put on your stockin's baby 'cause the night's getting cold
And everything dies baby that's a fact
But maybe everything that dies someday comes back

Lyrics
They're still racing out at the Trestles
But that blood it never burned in her veins
Now I hear she's got a house up in Fairview
And a style she's trying to maintain
Well if she wants to see me
You can tell her that I'm easily found
Tell her there's a spot out 'neath Abram's Bridge
And tell her there's a darkness on the edge of town

Everybody's got a secret Sonny
Something that they just can't face
Some folks spend their whole lives trying to keep it
They carry it with them every step that they take
Till some day they just cut it loose
Cut it loose or let it drag 'em down
Where no one asks any questions
Or looks too long in your face
In the darkness on the edge of town

Lyrics
Well you can go out with him
Play with all of his toys
But takin' care of you darlin'
Ain't for one of the boys
Oh there's somethin' in your soul
That he's gonna rob
And lovin' you baby lovin' you darlin'
Lovin' you woman is a man's man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job

Well now his kisses may thrill
Those other girls that he likes
But when it comes to treatin'
A real woman right
Well of all of his tricks
No they won't be enough
'Cause lovin' you baby lovin' you woman
Lovin' you darlin' is a man's man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job

You're dancin' with him he's holding you tight
I'm standing here waitin' to catch your eye
Your hand's on his neck as the music sways
All my illusions slip away

Now if you're lookin' for a hero
Someone to save the day
Well darlin' my feet
They're made of clay
But I've got something in my soul
And I wanna give it up
But gettin' up the nerve
Gettin' up the nerve
Gettin' up the nerve is a man's man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job woman
Lovin' you's a man's job
Also Appears OnHuman TouchIn Concert - MTV Plugged

Lyrics
I stood stone-like at midnight suspended in my masquerade
I combed my hair till it was just right and commanded the night brigade
I was open to pain and crossed by the rain and I walked on a crooked crutch
I strolled all alone through a fallout zone and came out with my soul untouched
I hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd but when they said "Sit down" I stood up.
Ooh-ooh growin' up

The flag of piracy flew from my mast, my sails were set wing to wing
I had a jukebox graduate for first mate, she couldn't sail but she sure could sing,
I pushed B-52 and bombed 'em with the blues with my gear set stubborn on standing
I broke all the rules, strafed my old high school, never once gave thought to landing,
I hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd but when they said "Come down" I threw up
Ooh-ooh growin' up

I took month-long vacations in the stratosphere and you know it's really hard to hold your breath.
I swear I lost everything I ever loved or feared, I was the cosmic kid in full costume dress
Well, my feet they finally took root in the earth but I got me a nice little place in the stars
And I swear I found the key to the universe in the engine of an old parked car
I hid in the mother breast of the crowd but when they said "Pull down" I pulled up
Ooh-ooh growin' up. Ooh-ooh growin' up
Also Appears OnGreetings from Asbury Park, N.J. Live 1975–85Tracks18 TracksLive in DublinLive in Dublin FilmChapter and Verse

Lyrics
House got too crowded clothes got too tight
And I don't know just where I'm going tonight
Out where the sky's been cleared by a good hard rain
There's somebody callin' my secret name

I'm going down to Lucky Town
Going down to Lucky Town
I wanna lose these blues I've found
Down in Lucky Town
Down in Lucky Town

Had a coat of fine leather and snakeskin boots
But that coat always had a tread hangin' loose
Well I pulled it one night and to my surprise
It led me right past your house and on over the rise

I'm going down to Lucky Town
Down to Lucky Town
I'm gonna lose these blues I've found
Down in Lucky Town
Down in Lucky Town

I had some victory that was just failure in deceit
Now the joke's comin' up through the soles of my feet
I been a long time walking on fortune's cane
Tonight I'm steppin' lightly and feelin' no pain

Well here's to your good looks baby now here's to my health
Here's to the loaded places that we take ourselves
When it comes to luck you make your own
Tonight I got dirt on my hands but I'm building me a new home

Lyrics
I love to see the cottonwood blossom
In the early spring
I love to see the message of love
That the bluebird brings
But when I see you walkin' with him
Down along the strand
I wish I were blind
When I see you with your man

I love to see your hair shining
In the long summer's light
I love to watch the stars fill the sky
On a summer night
The music plays you take his hand
I watch how you touch him as you start to dance
And I wish I were blind
When I see you with your man

We struggle here but all our love's in vain
And these eyes that once filled me with your beauty
Now fill me with pain
And the light that once entered here
Is banished from me
And this darkness is all baby that my heart sees

Lyrics
The screen door slams
Mary's dress waves
Like a vision she dances across the porch
As the radio plays
Roy Orbison singing for the lonely
Hey that's me and I want you only
Don't turn me home again
I just can't face myself alone again
Don't run back inside
darling you know just what I'm here for
So you're scared and you're thinking
That maybe we ain't that young anymore
Show a little faith, there's magic in the night
You ain't a beauty but hey you're all right
Oh and that's all right with me

You can hide 'neath your covers
And study your pain
Make crosses from your lovers
Throw roses in the rain
Waste your summer praying in vain
For a savior to rise from these streets
Well now I'm no hero
That's understood
All the redemption I can offer, girl
Is beneath this dirty hood
With a chance to make it good somehow
Hey what else can we do now
Except roll down the window
And let the wind blow back your hair
Well the night's busting open
These two lanes will take us anywhere
We got one last chance to make it real
To trade in these wings on some wheels
Climb in back, heaven's waiting on down the tracks
Oh come take my hand
We're riding out tonight to case the promised land
Oh Thunder Road, oh Thunder Road
oh Thunder Road
Lying out there like a killer in the sun
Hey I know it's late we can make it if we run
Oh Thunder Road, sit tight, take hold
Thunder Road

Well I got this guitar
And I learned how to make it talk
And my car's out back
If you're ready to take that long walk
From your front porch to my front seat
The door's open but the ride ain't free
And I know you're lonely
For words that I ain't spoken
But tonight we'll be free
All the promises'll be broken
There were ghosts in the eyes
Of all the boys you sent away
They haunt this dusty beach road
In the skeleton frames of burned-out Chevrolets

Lyrics
Well I've been out of the woods for six days and nights now
Well I'm a little hot wired, but I'm feeling alright
I got some money in my pocket and a long lean ride
I got to make it down to Galveston by Saturday night, now

Well I'm a little down under, but I'm feeling O.K.
Got a little lost along the way

I'm just around the corner to the light of day
Well, I'm just around the corner to the light of day

Been driving five hundred miles, got five hundred to go, yeah
I got rock and roll music on the radio
I got a brother on a rig just off the gulf coast
He says the girls down there, well they're really the most, man

Well I'm a little down under, but I'm feeling O.K.
I got a little lost along the way

Just around the corner to the light of day
Just around the corner to the light of day
I'm just around the corner to the light of day
I'm just around the corner to the light of day

Well I got thrown out of work on the Kokomo
Don't ask me what I'm doing, I don't know
I hope he wasn't joking when he wrote me that letter
Things can't get any worse, they got to get better

Well I'm a little down under, but I'm feeling O.K.
I got a little lost along the way

Lyrics
Billy had a mistress down on 'A' and 12th
She was that little somethin' that he did for himself
His own little secret didn't hurt nobody
Come the afternoon he'd take her wadin'

Waist deep in the big muddy
Waist deep in the big muddy
You start out standing but end up crawlin'

Got in some trouble and needed a hand from a friend of mine
This old friend he had a figure in mind
It was nothing illegal just a little bit funny
He said "C'mon don't tell me that the rich don't know
Sooner or later it all comes down to money"

And you're waist deep in the big muddy
Waist deep in the big muddy
You start on higher ground but end up crawlin'

Well I had a friend said "You watch what you do
Poison snake bites you and you're poison too"

How beautiful the river flows and the birds they sing
But you and I we're messier things
There ain't no one leavin' this world buddy
Without their shirttail dirty
Or their hands bloody

Waist deep in the big muddy
Waist deep in the big muddy
You start on higher ground but end up somehow crawlin'
Waist deep in the big muddy
Also Appears OnLucky Town

Lyrics
I bought a bourgeois house in the Hollywood hills
With a truckload of hundred thousand dollar bills
Man came by to hook up my cable TV
We settled in for the night my baby and me
We switched 'round and 'round 'til half-past dawn
There was fifty-seven channels and nothin' on

Well now home entertainment was my baby's wish
So I hopped into town for a satellite dish
I tied it to the top of my Japanese car
I came home and I pointed it out into the stars
A message came back from the great beyond
There's fifty-seven channels and nothin' on

Well we might'a made some friends with some billionaires
We might'a got all nice and friendly
If we'd made it upstairs
All I got was a note that said "Bye-bye John
Our love is fifty-seven channels and nothin' on"

So I bought a .44 magnum it was solid steel cast
And in the blessed name of Elvis well I just let it blast
'Til my TV lay in pieces there at my feet
And they busted me for disturbin' the almighty peace
Judge said "What you got in your defense son?"
"Fifty-seven channels and nothin' on"
I can see by your eyes friend you're just about gone
Fifty-seven channels and nothin' on...
Fifty-seven channels and nothin'
Also Appears OnHuman Touch

Lyrics
Well I sought gold and diamond rings
My own drug to ease the pain that living brings
Walked from the mountain to the valley floor
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward

From a house on a hill a sacred light shines
I walk through these rooms but none of them are mine
Down empty hallways I went from door to door
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward

Well your hair shone in the sun
I was so high I was the lucky one
Then I came crashing down like a drunk on a barroom floor
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward

Tonight I can feel the cold wind at my back
I'm flyin' high over gray fields my feathers long and black
Down along the river's silent edge I soar
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward
Also Appears OnLucky TownIn Concert - MTV Plugged

Lyrics
I had a friend was a big baseball player
back in high school
He could throw that speedball by you
Make you look like a fool boy
Saw him the other night at this roadside bar
I was walking in, he was walking out
We went back inside sat down had a few drinks
but all he kept talking about was

Chorus:
Glory days well they'll pass you by
Glory days in the wink of a young girl's eye
Glory days, glory days

Well there's a girl that lives up the block
back in school she could turn all the boy's heads
Sometimes on a Friday I'll stop by
and have a few drinks after she put her kids to bed
Her and her husband Bobby well they split up
I guess it's two years gone by now
We just sit around talking about the old times,
she says when she feels like crying
she starts laughing thinking about

Chorus

Now I think I'm going down to the well tonight
and I'm going to drink till I get my fill
And I hope when I get old I don't sit around thinking about it
but I probably will
Yeah, just sitting back trying to recapture
a little of the glory of, well time slips away
and leaves you with nothing mister but
boring stories of glory days

Lyrics
Well now on a summer night in a dusky room
Come a little piece of the Lord's undying light
Crying like he swallowed the fiery moon
In his mother's arms it was all the beauty I could take
Like the missing words to some prayer that I could never make
In a world so hard and dirty so fouled and confused
Searching for a little bit of God's mercy
I found living proof

I put my heart and soul I put 'em high upon a shelf
Right next to the faith the faith that I'd lost in myself
I went down into the desert city
Just tryin' so hard to shed my skin
I crawled deep into some kind of darkness
Lookin' to burn out every trace of who I'd been
You do some sad sad things baby
When it's your you 're tryin' to lose
You do some sad and hurtful things
I've seen living proof

You shot through my anger and rage
To show me my prison was just an open cage
There were no keys no guards
Just one frightened man and some old shadows for bars

Well now all that's sure on the boulevard
Is that life is just a house of cards
As fragile as each and every breath
Of this boy sleepin' in our bed
Tonight let's lie beneath the eaves
Just a close band of happy thieves
And when that train comes we'll get on board
And steal what we can from the treasures of the Lord
It's been along long drought baby
Tonight the rain's pourin' down on our roof
Looking for a little bit of God's mercy
I found living proof
Also Appears OnLucky TownIn Concert - MTV PluggedThe Essential Bruce SpringsteenChapter and Verse

Lyrics
Well I've been a losin' gambler
Just throwin' snake eyes
Love ain't got me downhearted
I know up around the corner lies
My fool's paradise
In just another roll of the dice

All my elevens and sevens been comin' up
Sixes and nines
But since I fell for you baby
Been comin' on changin' times
They're just waitin' over the rise
Just another roll of the dice

I've stumbled and I know I made my mistakes
But tonight I'm gonna be playin' for all of the stakes

Well it's never too late so come on girl
The tables are waiting
You and me and lady luck well tonight
We'll be celebrating
Drinkin' champagne on ice
In just another roll of the dice

High-rollers lay down your bets and I'll raise 'em
Well I know the odds ain't in my favor

Maybe I'm just a clown throwin' down
Lookin' to come up busted
I'm a thief in the house of love
And I can't be trusted
Well I'll be making my heist
In just another roll of the dice
Move on up
Come on seven
Roll me baby
In this fool's heaven
Also Appears OnHuman Touch

Lucky Town

Created more quickly and easily than Human Touch, its companion album, Lucky Town runs the gamut from the rocking title track to the soft and soul-searching “My Beautiful Reward.” Much of the songwriting is autobiographical, from “Local Hero” to the masterful “Living Proof,” written after the birth of Springsteen’s first son.

Lyrics
Well my soul checked out missing as I sat listening
To the hours and minutes tickin' away
Yeah, just sittin' around waitin' for my life to begin
While it was all just slippin' away.
I'm tired of waitin' for tomorrow to come
Or that train to come roarin' 'round the bend
I got a new suit of clothes a pretty red rose
And a woman I can call my friend

These are better days baby
Yeah there's better days shining through
These are better days baby
Better days with a girl like you

Well I took a piss at fortune's sweet kiss
It's like eatin' caviar and dirt
It's a sad funny ending to find yourself pretending
A rich man in a poor man's shirt
Now my ass was draggin' when from a passin' gypsy wagon
Your heart like a diamond shone
Tonight I'm layin' in your arms carvin' lucky charms
Out of these heard luck bones

These are better days baby
These are better days it's true
These are better days
There's better days shining through

Now a life of leisure and a pirate's treasure
Don't make much for tragedy
But it's a sad man my friend who's livin' in his own skin
And can't stand the company
Every fool's got a reason to feelin' sorry for himself
And turn his heart to stone
Tonight this fool's halfway to heaven and just a mile outta hell
And I feel like I'm comin' home

These are better days baby
There's better days shining through
These are better days
Better days with a girl like you

Lyrics
House got too crowded clothes got too tight
And I don't know just where I'm going tonight
Out where the sky's been cleared by a good hard rain
There's somebody callin' my secret name

I'm going down to Lucky Town
Going down to Lucky Town
I wanna lose these blues I've found
Down in Lucky Town
Down in Lucky Town

Had a coat of fine leather and snakeskin boots
But that coat always had a tread hangin' loose
Well I pulled it one night and to my surprise
It led me right past your house and on over the rise

I'm going down to Lucky Town
Down to Lucky Town
I'm gonna lose these blues I've found
Down in Lucky Town
Down in Lucky Town

I had some victory that was just failure in deceit
Now the joke's comin' up through the soles of my feet
I been a long time walking on fortune's cane
Tonight I'm steppin' lightly and feelin' no pain

Well here's to your good looks baby now here's to my health
Here's to the loaded places that we take ourselves
When it comes to luck you make your own
Tonight I got dirt on my hands but I'm building me a new home

Lyrics
I was driving through my hometown
I was just kinda killin' time
When I seen a face staring out of a black velvet painting
From the window of the five and dime
I couldn't quite recall the name
But the pose looked familiar to me
So I asked the salesgirl "Who was that man
Between the doberman and Bruce Lee?"
She said "Just a local hero"
"Local hero" she said with a smile
"Yeah a local hero he used to live here for a while"

I met a stranger dressed in black
At the train station
He said "Son your soul can be saved"
There's beautiful women nights of low livin'
And some dangerous money to be made
There's a big town 'cross the whiskey line
And if we turn the right cards up
They make us boss the devil pays off
And them folks that are real hard up
They get their local hero
Somebody with the right style
They get their local hero
Somebody with just the right smile

Well I learned my job I learned it well
Fit myself with religion and a story to tell
First they made me the king then they made me pope
Then they brought the rope

I woke to a gypsy girl sayin' "Drink this"
Well my hands had lost all sensation
These days I'm feeling all right
'Cept I can't tell my courage from my desperation
From the tainted chalice
Well I drunk some heady wine
Tonight I'm layin' here
But there's something in my ear
Sayin' there's a little town just beneath the floodline
Needs a local hero
Somebody with the right style
Lookin' for a local hero
Someone with the right smile
Local hero local hero she said with a smile
Local hero he used to live here for a while
Also Appears OnIn Concert - MTV Plugged Film

Lyrics
Billy had a mistress down on 'A' and 12th
She was that little somethin' that he did for himself
His own little secret didn't hurt nobody
Come the afternoon he'd take her wadin'

Waist deep in the big muddy
Waist deep in the big muddy
You start out standing but end up crawlin'

Got in some trouble and needed a hand from a friend of mine
This old friend he had a figure in mind
It was nothing illegal just a little bit funny
He said "C'mon don't tell me that the rich don't know
Sooner or later it all comes down to money"

And you're waist deep in the big muddy
Waist deep in the big muddy
You start on higher ground but end up crawlin'

Well I had a friend said "You watch what you do
Poison snake bites you and you're poison too"

How beautiful the river flows and the birds they sing
But you and I we're messier things
There ain't no one leavin' this world buddy
Without their shirttail dirty
Or their hands bloody

Waist deep in the big muddy
Waist deep in the big muddy
You start on higher ground but end up somehow crawlin'
Waist deep in the big muddy
Also Appears OnIn Concert - MTV Plugged Film

Lyrics
Well now on a summer night in a dusky room
Come a little piece of the Lord's undying light
Crying like he swallowed the fiery moon
In his mother's arms it was all the beauty I could take
Like the missing words to some prayer that I could never make
In a world so hard and dirty so fouled and confused
Searching for a little bit of God's mercy
I found living proof

I put my heart and soul I put 'em high upon a shelf
Right next to the faith the faith that I'd lost in myself
I went down into the desert city
Just tryin' so hard to shed my skin
I crawled deep into some kind of darkness
Lookin' to burn out every trace of who I'd been
You do some sad sad things baby
When it's your you 're tryin' to lose
You do some sad and hurtful things
I've seen living proof

You shot through my anger and rage
To show me my prison was just an open cage
There were no keys no guards
Just one frightened man and some old shadows for bars

Well now all that's sure on the boulevard
Is that life is just a house of cards
As fragile as each and every breath
Of this boy sleepin' in our bed
Tonight let's lie beneath the eaves
Just a close band of happy thieves
And when that train comes we'll get on board
And steal what we can from the treasures of the Lord
It's been along long drought baby
Tonight the rain's pourin' down on our roof
Looking for a little bit of God's mercy
I found living proof
Also Appears OnIn Concert - MTV PluggedIn Concert - MTV Plugged FilmThe Essential Bruce SpringsteenChapter and Verse

Lyrics
I'm standing in the backyard
Listening to the party Inside
Tonight I'm drinkin' in the forgiveness
This life provides
The scars we carry remain but the pain slips away it seems
Oh won't you baby be in my book of dreams

I'm watchin' you through the window
With your girlfriends from back home
You're showin' off your dress
There's laughter and a toast
From your daddy to the prettiest bride he's ever seen
Oh won't you baby be in my book of dreams

In the darkness my fingers slip across your skin
I feel your sweet reply
The room fades away and suddenly I'm way up high
Just holdin' you to me
As through the window the moonlight streams
Oh won't you baby be in my book of dreams

Now the ritual begins
'Neath the wedding garland we meet as strangers
The dance floor is alive with beauty
Mystery and danger
We dance out 'neath the stars' ancient light into the darkening trees
Oh won't you baby be in my book of dreams

Lyrics
On the road to Basra stood young Lieutenant Jimmy Bly
Detailed to go through the clothes of the soldiers who died
At night in dreams he sees their souls rise
Like dark geese into the Oklahoma skies

Well this is a prayer for the souls of the departed
Those who've gone and left their babies brokenhearted
This is a prayer for the souls of the departed

Now Raphael Rodriguez was just seven years old
Shot down in a schoolyard by some East Compton Cholos
His mamma cried "My beautiful boy is dead"
In the hills the self-made men just sighed and shook their heads

This is a prayer for the souls of the departed
Those who've gone and left their babies brokenhearted
Young lives over before they got started
This is a prayer for the souls of the departed

Tonight as I tuck my own son in bed
All I can think of is what if it would've been him instead
I want to build me a wall so high nothing can burn it down
Right here on my own piece of dirty ground

Now I ply my trade in the land of king dollar
Where you get paid and your silence passes as honor
And all the hatred and dirty little lies
Been written off the books and into decent men's eyes

Lyrics
Well I sought gold and diamond rings
My own drug to ease the pain that living brings
Walked from the mountain to the valley floor
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward

From a house on a hill a sacred light shines
I walk through these rooms but none of them are mine
Down empty hallways I went from door to door
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward

Well your hair shone in the sun
I was so high I was the lucky one
Then I came crashing down like a drunk on a barroom floor
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward

Tonight I can feel the cold wind at my back
I'm flyin' high over gray fields my feathers long and black
Down along the river's silent edge I soar
Searching for my beautiful reward
Searching for my beautiful reward
Also Appears OnIn Concert - MTV PluggedIn Concert - MTV Plugged Film

Human Touch

Released simultaneously with Lucky Town, the soul-inflected Human Touch marks the Boss’ first band record without the E Street Band. Another first: collaborating on songwriting, with co-producer Roy Bittan. Bruce has called this his “happy record,” and it’s clearly indicative of an artist searching for a new path.

Lyrics
I bought a bourgeois house in the Hollywood hills
With a truckload of hundred thousand dollar bills
Man came by to hook up my cable TV
We settled in for the night my baby and me
We switched 'round and 'round 'til half-past dawn
There was fifty-seven channels and nothin' on

Well now home entertainment was my baby's wish
So I hopped into town for a satellite dish
I tied it to the top of my Japanese car
I came home and I pointed it out into the stars
A message came back from the great beyond
There's fifty-seven channels and nothin' on

Well we might'a made some friends with some billionaires
We might'a got all nice and friendly
If we'd made it upstairs
All I got was a note that said "Bye-bye John
Our love is fifty-seven channels and nothin' on"

So I bought a .44 magnum it was solid steel cast
And in the blessed name of Elvis well I just let it blast
'Til my TV lay in pieces there at my feet
And they busted me for disturbin' the almighty peace
Judge said "What you got in your defense son?"
"Fifty-seven channels and nothin' on"
I can see by your eyes friend you're just about gone
Fifty-seven channels and nothin' on...
Fifty-seven channels and nothin'
Also Appears OnIn Concert - MTV Plugged Film

Lyrics
First time I crossed my heart
I was beggin' baby, please
At your bedside, down on my knees
When I crossed my heart
When I crossed my heart
I crossed my heart, pretty baby over you

Second time I crossed my heart
Rain came in from the south
I was lyin' there with something sweet and salty in my mouth
When I crossed my heart
When I crossed my heart
When I crossed my heart, pretty darlin' over you

Well, you may think the world's black and white
And you're dirty or you're clean
You better watch out you don't slip
Through them spaces in between

Where the night gets sticky
And the sky gets black
I grabbed you, baby, and you grabbed me back
And we crossed our hearts
We crossed our hearts
Yeah, I crossed my heart...

Little boys, little girls
They know their wrongs from their rights
Once you cross your heart
You ain't ever supposed to lie

Lyrics
I was your big man I was your prince charming
King on a white horse hey now look how far I've fallen
I tried to trick you yeah but baby you got wise
You cut me cut me right down to size
Now I'm just a fool in Gloria's eyes

Swore I'd get you back I was so sure
I'd get you back like I done so many times before
A little sweet talk to cover over all of the lies
You came runnin' back but to my surprise
Well there was somethin' gone in Gloria's eyes

Well in the dark when it was just me and you
I asked the question that I knew the answer to
Is that a smile my little dolly on the shelf
Tell me is that a smile
Or is it something else?

Now I work hard to prove my love is true
Now I work hard and I bring it on home to you
At night I pray as silently you lie
Some day my love again will rise
Like a shining torch in Gloria's eyes

I was your big man your prince charming
King on a white horse now look how far I've fallen

Lyrics
Ol' catfish in the lake, we called him Big Jim
When I was a kid, my only wish was to get my line in him
Skipped church one Sunday rowed out and throw'd in my line
Jim took that hook pole and me right over the side
Went driftin' down past old tires and rusty cans of beer
The angel of the lake whispered in my ear
"Before you chose your wish son
You better think first
With every wish there comes a curse"

I fell in love with beautiful Doreen
She was the prettiest thing this old town'd ever seen
I courted her and I made her mine
But I grew jealous whenever another man'd
Come walkin' down the line
And my jealousy made me treat her mean and cruel
She sighed, "Bobby oh Bobby you're such a fool
Don't you know before you choose your wish
You'd better think first
'Cause with every wish there comes a curse"

These days I sit around and laugh
At the many rivers I've crossed
But on the far banks there's always another forest
Where a man can get lost
Well there in the high trees love's bluebird glides
Guiding us 'cross to another river on the other side
And there someone is waitin' with a look in her eyes
And though my heart's grown weary
And more than a little bit shy
Tonight I'll drink from her waters to quench my thirst
And leave the angels to worry
With every wish...

Lyrics
Well I've been a losin' gambler
Just throwin' snake eyes
Love ain't got me downhearted
I know up around the corner lies
My fool's paradise
In just another roll of the dice

All my elevens and sevens been comin' up
Sixes and nines
But since I fell for you baby
Been comin' on changin' times
They're just waitin' over the rise
Just another roll of the dice

I've stumbled and I know I made my mistakes
But tonight I'm gonna be playin' for all of the stakes

Well it's never too late so come on girl
The tables are waiting
You and me and lady luck well tonight
We'll be celebrating
Drinkin' champagne on ice
In just another roll of the dice

High-rollers lay down your bets and I'll raise 'em
Well I know the odds ain't in my favor

Maybe I'm just a clown throwin' down
Lookin' to come up busted
I'm a thief in the house of love
And I can't be trusted
Well I'll be making my heist
In just another roll of the dice
Move on up
Come on seven
Roll me baby
In this fool's heaven
Also Appears OnIn Concert - MTV Plugged Film

Lyrics
Mister Trouble come walkin' this way
Year gone by feels like one long day
But I'm alive and I'm feelin' all right
Well I run that hard road outta heartbreak city
Built a roadside carnival out of hurt and self-pity
It was all wrong well now I'm moving on

Ain't no church bells ringing
Ain't no flags unfurled
It's just me and you and the love we're bringing
Into the real world
Into the real world

I built a shrine in my heart it wasn't pretty to see
Made out of fool's gold memory and tears cried
Now I'm headin' over the rise
I'm searchin' for one clear moment of love and truth
I still got a little faith
But what I need is some proof tonight
I'm lookin' for it in your eyes

Ain't no church bells ringing
Ain't no flags unfurled
Just me and you and the faith we're bringing
Into the real world
Into the real world

Well tonight I just wanna shout
I feel my soul waist deep and sinkin'
Into this black river of doubt
I just wanna rise and walk along the riverside
And when the morning comes baby I don't wanna hide
I'll stand right at your side with my arms open wide

Well tonight I just wanna shout
I feel my soul waist deep and sinkin'
Into this black river of doubt
I just wanna rise and walk along the riverside
'Til the morning comes
I'll stand right by your side

I wanna find some answers I wanna ask for some help
I'm tired of running scared
Baby let's get our bags packed
We'll take it here to hell and heaven and back
And if love is hopeless hopeless at best
Come on put on your party dress it's ours tonight
And we're goin' with the tumblin' dice

Ain't no church bells ringing
Ain't no flags unfurled
It's just me and you and the hope we're bringing
Into the real world
Well into the real world
Oh into the real world

Lyrics
Said you'd give me just a little kiss
And you'd rock me for a little while
Well you'd slip me just a piece of it
Listen up little child
I Want it all or nothin' at all
I Want it all or nothin' at all

Said you'd take me for a little dance
If you had a little time on your hands
Well all I do is push and shove
Just to get a little piece of your love
I want it all or nothin' at all
I want it all or nothin' at all

Well now I don't wanna be greedy
But when it comes to love there ain't no doubt
You just ain't gonna get what you want
With one foot in bed and one foot out
You got to give it all or nothin' at all
All or nothin' at all

Now I only got a little time
So if you're gonna change your mind
Then shout out what you're thinkin' of
If what you're thinkin' of is love
I want it all or nothin' at all
I want it all or nothin' at all
I want to have it all or nothin' at all
I want it all or nothin' at all
I want it all or nothin' at all
I want to give it all or nothin' at all

Lyrics
Well you can go out with him
Play with all of his toys
But takin' care of you darlin'
Ain't for one of the boys
Oh there's somethin' in your soul
That he's gonna rob
And lovin' you baby lovin' you darlin'
Lovin' you woman is a man's man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job

Well now his kisses may thrill
Those other girls that he likes
But when it comes to treatin'
A real woman right
Well of all of his tricks
No they won't be enough
'Cause lovin' you baby lovin' you woman
Lovin' you darlin' is a man's man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job

You're dancin' with him he's holding you tight
I'm standing here waitin' to catch your eye
Your hand's on his neck as the music sways
All my illusions slip away

Now if you're lookin' for a hero
Someone to save the day
Well darlin' my feet
They're made of clay
But I've got something in my soul
And I wanna give it up
But gettin' up the nerve
Gettin' up the nerve
Gettin' up the nerve is a man's man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job baby
Lovin' you's a man's job
Lovin' you's a man's job woman
Lovin' you's a man's job
Also Appears OnIn Concert - MTV PluggedIn Concert - MTV Plugged Film

Lyrics
I love to see the cottonwood blossom
In the early spring
I love to see the message of love
That the bluebird brings
But when I see you walkin' with him
Down along the strand
I wish I were blind
When I see you with your man

I love to see your hair shining
In the long summer's light
I love to watch the stars fill the sky
On a summer night
The music plays you take his hand
I watch how you touch him as you start to dance
And I wish I were blind
When I see you with your man

We struggle here but all our love's in vain
And these eyes that once filled me with your beauty
Now fill me with pain
And the light that once entered here
Is banished from me
And this darkness is all baby that my heart sees

Lyrics
My soul went walkin' but I stayed here
Feel like I been workin' for a thousand years
Chippin' away at this chain of my own lies
Climbin' a wall a hundred thousand miles high
Well I woke up this morning on the other side
Yeah yeah this is the long goodbye
Hey yeah this is the long goodbye

Same old faces it's the same old town
What once was laughs is draggin' me now
Wailin' on rain hangin' on for love
Words of forgiveness from some God above
Ain't no words of mercy comin' from on high
Oh no just a long goodbye
Yeah yeah just one long goodbye

Well I went to leave twenty years ago
Since then I guess I been packin' kinda slow
Sure did like that admirin' touch
Guess I like'd it a little too much

The moon is high and here I am
Sittin' here with this hammer in hand
One more drink oughta ease the pain
Starin' at that last link in the chain
Well let's raise our glass and let this hammer fly
Hey yeah this is the long goodbye
Hey yeah this is the long goodbye
Kiss me baby and we're gonna fly
Hey yeah this is the long goodbye
Yeah yeah this is the long goodbye
Hey yeah this is the long goodbye
Kiss me baby 'cause we're gonna ride
Yeah yeah this is the long goodbye

Lyrics
Took my baby to a picture show
Found a seat in the back row
Sound came up lights went down
Rambo he was blowin' 'em down
I don't need no gun in my fist baby
All I need is your sweet kiss
To get me feelin' like a real man
Feelin' like a real man
Well you can beat on your chest
Hell any monkey can
But you got me feelin' like a real man
Oh feelin' like a real man

Me and my girl Saturday night
Late movie on channel five
The girls were droppin' they're droppin' like flies
To some smooth talkin' cool walkin' private eye
I ain't got no nerves of steel
But all I got to know is if your love is real
To get me feelin' like a real man
Oh feelin' like a real man
Well you can beat on your chest
Hell any monkey can
But you got me feelin' like a real man
Oh feelin' like a real man

I ain't no fighter that's easy to see
And as a lover I ain't goin' down in history
But when the lights go down and you pull me close
Well I look in your eyes and there's one thing I know
Baby I'll be tough enough
If I can find the guts to give you all my love
Then I'll be feelin' like a real man
Feelin' like a real man
Well you can beat on your chest
Hell any monkey can
You got me feelin' like a real man
Oh feelin' like a real man
Yeah I been feelin' like a real man
Feelin' like a real man